KR100949335B1 - Battery Module - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a battery module configured by connecting a plurality of unit cells, a plurality of unit cells electrically connected to each other, a housing in which a plurality of through-holes are formed to accommodate the unit cells respectively corresponding to the unit cells, and And a duct member coupled to the housing and covering the electrode terminals of the unit cells. In addition, a cooling channel for injecting a cooling medium toward the through hole is formed in the duct member, and a gas discharge passage for discharging gas generated from the unit cells in a predetermined direction is formed.

Secondary battery, module, cooling, flow path, gas, housing

Description

Battery Module {Battery Module}

The present invention relates to a battery module configured by connecting a plurality of unit cells, and more particularly, a battery module having a flow path structure for cooling the unit cells and a gas discharge structure for discharging gas generated in the unit cells. It is about.

A rechargeable battery is a battery that can be charged and discharged unlike a primary battery that is not rechargeable. Low-capacity secondary batteries consisting of one cell are used in portable electronic devices such as mobile phones, notebook computers, and camcorders, and large-capacity secondary batteries in which a plurality of cells are connected in a pack form are used as power sources for driving motors of hybrid electric vehicles. .

Such a large capacity secondary battery is connected in series so as to be used for driving a motor of an electric vehicle requiring a large power, and is generally composed of a battery module. That is, the battery module generally refers to a plurality of secondary batteries (hereinafter, referred to as 'unit cells' for convenience of description throughout the specification).

Looking at such a battery module in more detail, each unit cell has an electrode group having a positive electrode and a negative electrode positioned between the separator, a case having a space in which the electrode group is built, and coupled to the case and the electrode group And a cap assembly with electrode terminals that are electrically connected. In addition, each unit cell is normally arranged at regular intervals in the housing and connects the terminals of each unit battery to form a battery module.

Since the battery module constitutes one battery module by connecting at least several to several tens of unit cells, it must be able to easily dissipate heat generated in each unit cell. The heat dissipation characteristics of such a battery module are considered important when designing a module so as to influence the performance of not only a unit cell but also a product itself employing a battery module.

If the heat dissipation of the unit cell is not smoothly performed in the battery module, a temperature deviation occurs between the unit cells. Then, the battery module cannot smoothly output the power of the required capacity as a power source of a product such as an electric vacuum cleaner, an electric scooter, or an automobile (electric vehicle or hybrid electric vehicle). In addition, the unit battery has a problem in that the temperature inside the battery rises due to heat generated therein, thereby degrading the charge and discharge performance.

In addition, gas is generated in the unit cell in the process of repeatedly charging and discharging. In particular, since the battery module has a configuration in which a plurality of unit cells are connected, it is necessary to quickly and smoothly discharge gas generated from the unit cells. In other words, if such gas is not discharged smoothly, the unit cell has an inherent risk of explosion as the internal pressure increases.

However, the conventional battery module does not provide a design structure that can completely solve the heat discharge and gas discharge of the unit cell respectively. However, in the related art, there has been a battery module that provides a design structure considering heat emission and gas discharge of a unit cell, but such a battery module has a problem that the size of the module is enlarged while the structure thereof is complicated.

The present invention has been proposed to solve the conventional problems as described above, and an object thereof is to provide a battery module having a passage structure for heat dissipation of a unit cell and a passage for gas discharge.

In addition, another object of the present invention is to provide a battery module which has a passage structure for heat dissipation of a unit cell and a passage for discharging gas within a limited space, but is not enlarged compared to the conventional one, and is compact.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a battery module includes a plurality of unit cells electrically connected to each other, a housing having a plurality of through-holes configured to receive the unit cells respectively corresponding to the unit cells, and coupled to the housing. And a duct member covering electrode terminals of the unit cells. In the duct member, a cooling passage for injecting a cooling medium toward the through hole is formed, and a gas discharge passage for discharging gas generated from the unit cells in a predetermined direction is formed.

The battery module according to the embodiment of the present invention further includes a separation unit formed in the duct member to separately separate the cooling passage and the gas discharge passage.

The separating part protrudes toward the electrode terminal of the unit cell and is formed such that the cooling passage penetrates toward the electrode terminal.

The cooling passage is in communication with a separation space existing between the unit cell and the through hole.

The separators may be formed in plural in correspondence with the unit cells, and the plurality of separators may be arranged in a plurality of rows so that the gas discharge passage is formed between the columns.

The duct member is formed with a discharge port communicating with the gas discharge passage, the gas generated from the unit cells are discharged to the outside through the gas discharge passage and the discharge port.

The separating part has an opening surface on one side in a shape surrounding a part of a circumference of an electrode terminal of the unit battery.

A pair of separation portions adjacent to each other among the plurality of separation portions face each opening surface.

The unit cells corresponding to the pair of separators are electrically connected by a terminal plate, and the terminal plate is located in a space formed by the opening surfaces of the pair of separators.

The plurality of separation parts may be formed in different sizes according to positions arranged in the duct member.

The battery module according to the embodiment of the present invention further includes a cover member provided with an inner space for supplying the cooling medium to the cooling channel while covering the duct member.

The battery module according to the embodiment of the present invention can easily discharge the gas generated in the unit cell while cooling the unit cell. As a result, the battery module operates more stably than before, and thus has an advantage of smoothly outputting power of a required capacity.

In addition, the battery module according to the embodiment of the present invention has an advantage that can be compact without being enlarged compared to the conventional while having a flow path structure for the heat discharge of the unit cell and a passage for gas discharge in a limited space, respectively.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art may easily implement the present invention. As those skilled in the art would realize, the described embodiments may be modified in various different ways, all without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention.

1 is a perspective view of a battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, the battery module 100 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention has a cooling passage for cooling a unit cell below a preset temperature and a gas discharge for discharging gas generated from the unit cell to the outside. It is designed as a structure having passages respectively. To this end, the battery module 100 has approximately the following components.

The battery module 100 includes a housing 110 accommodating a plurality of unit cells, a cover member 120 coupled to the housing 110 to protect the unit cells from external disturbance elements, and the housing 110 and the cover member. The duct member 200 is integrally coupled between the 120 and covers the electrode terminals of the unit cells.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating the battery module in a state in which the cover member illustrated in FIG. 1 is removed.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the cooling channel 210 is formed in the duct member 200. The cooling medium injected through the cooling channel 210 may be supplied toward the unit cell accommodated in the housing 110 to remove heat generated from the unit cell. In this case, the cooling medium may be air in the atmosphere or cooling air cooled to a predetermined temperature. The cooling medium may be directly supplied to the cooling passage 210 from the outside, or may be supplied to the cooling passage 210 through the cover member 120. That is, the cover member 120 is provided with an internal space of a predetermined size or more, and receives a cooling medium from the outside. The cover member 120 distributes and supplies the cooling medium to the cooling channel 210.

3 is a perspective view illustrating the battery module in a state in which the duct member shown in FIG. 2 is removed.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the battery module 100 includes a plurality of unit cells 130 electrically connected to each other, and accommodates the unit cells 130 in the housing 110.

The housing 110 has a plurality of through holes formed therein, and the plurality of unit cells 130 are accommodated in corresponding through holes, respectively. Here, the battery module 100 is exemplarily arranged to stack a plurality of unit cells 130 in two stages. However, the battery module 100 may be formed in multiple layers according to the power capacity of the battery module 100.

A pair of adjacent unit cells 130 among the plurality of unit cells 130 are electrically connected by the terminal plate 140, and the terminal plate 140 is unit cell 130 by the fastening member 150. Is coupled to the electrode terminal. Hereinafter, the coupling relationship between the housing 110, the unit cell 130, and the duct member 200 and the positional relationship thereof will be described.

4 is a cross-sectional view schematically illustrating a coupling relationship between a housing in which a unit cell is built and a duct member cut along a line IV-IV in FIG. 2.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, a plurality of through holes 112 are formed in the housing 110 to accommodate the unit cells 130. In the embodiment of the present invention, the unit cell 130 is formed in a cylindrical shape, but may also be formed in a square or various shapes. The through hole 112 is formed in a cylindrical shape corresponding to the unit cell 130. However, since the through hole 112 is formed larger than the cylindrical cross section of the unit cell 130, a space for allowing the cooling medium to continuously flow is maintained between the unit cell 130 and the through hole 112. . In addition, the cooling flow path 210 is positioned in communication with the separation space existing between the unit cell 130 and the through hole 112 in a state where the housing 110 and the duct member 200 are coupled to each other. The cooling medium introduced through 210 may remove heat generated from the surface of the unit cell 130.

In this case, the plurality of unit cells 130 in the battery module 100 are connected in series. In the housing 110, the unit cells 130 are alternately disposed such that the positive electrode and the negative electrode do not face the same direction, and the positive electrode and the negative electrode face the other direction, respectively. As described above, the adjacent unit cells 130 are electrically connected to the negative terminal and the positive terminal by the terminal plate 140.

The battery module 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention discharges gas generated from the inside of the unit cell 130 to the outside of the battery module 100 together with a flow path structure for cooling the unit cell 130 as described above. In order to make the duct member 200 is formed as follows.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the duct member shown in FIG. 2, and FIG. 6 is a plan view of the duct member shown in FIG. 5.

As illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 6, the duct member 200 includes separation parts 220 and 221 separately separating the cooling passages 210 and 211 and the gas discharge passage. The separation parts 220 and 221 refer to a shape in which the cooling flow paths 210 and 211 penetrate while protruding toward the electrode terminal of the unit cell 130. The separators 220 and 221 may be formed in plural in correspondence with the unit cells 130, and the plurality of separators 220 and 221 may be arranged in two stages corresponding to the unit cells 130, respectively. As the plurality of separation parts 220 and 221 are arranged in this manner, a gas discharge passage (the area in which the arrows are arranged in a line in FIGS. 5 and 6) is formed between the heat and the heat.

The shape of each of the separators 220 and 221 is as follows. The separating parts 220 and 221 have a shape that covers a part of the circumference of the electrode terminal of the unit cell 130 and have an opening surface at one side thereof, and are formed to be substantially similar to the C-shaped cross section. Due to the shape, the separators 220 and 221 receive electrode terminals of the unit cell 130 in the inner regions 230 and 231, respectively, and the cooling passages 210 and 211 penetrate the unit cell 130. It may be directly communicated to the spaced space between the holes 112. In addition, the gas discharged from the electrode terminal direction of the unit cell 130 flows into the gas discharge passage through the opening surfaces of the separation units 220 and 221 and is discharged to the outside of the duct member 200 along the gas discharge passage. .

As described above, the separators 220 and 221 form the cooling passages 210 and 211 and the gas discharge passage separately, and the gas discharged from the cooling medium and the unit cell 130 supplied through the cooling passages 210 and 211 are separated from each other. Block them from intermingling.

In addition, the pair of separation parts 220 and 221 adjacent to each other among the plurality of separation parts are formed such that the respective opening surfaces face each other. That is, the terminal plate 140 electrically connecting the pair of unit cells 130 is positioned in the space formed by the opening surfaces of the pair of separation units 220 and 221.

The duct member 200 is provided with a discharge port 240 communicating with the gas discharge passage, so that the gas generated from the unit cells 130 is discharged to the outside through the discharge port 240. In this case, the duct member 200 may further include a blowing means for forcibly inducing the flow of gas so that the gas generated from the unit cells 130 flows in one direction along the gas discharge passage.

The battery module 100 may have a different degree of heat generation depending on a position where the plurality of unit cells 130 are arranged, and thermal imbalance may occur between the plurality of unit cells 130 when the same cooling medium is supplied. In order to solve this problem, the battery module 100 varies the size of the plurality of separators 220 and 221 or the opening surface forming ratio, respectively. That is, since the flow paths of the cooling medium are different in the cooling passages 210 and 211 according to the sizes or the opening surfaces of the separation parts 220 and 221, the plurality of separation parts 220 and the respective ones corresponding to the unit cells 130, respectively. Different shapes of each of 221.

For example, the unit cell 130 positioned in the central region of the housing 110 may not be easily heat dissipated in comparison with other unit cells 130 in terms of position. However, the battery module 100 according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention forms a relatively large size or an opening surface of the separation parts 220 and 221 corresponding to the unit cells 130 in a specific region, thereby providing a unit battery in a specific region. The degree of cooling of 130 can be further improved.

7 is a view listing the shapes of the duct member that can be applied to the battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 7, Example 1 was formed such that a plurality of separators each covered only 76 ° of a circular cross section, and Example 2 showed that five separators located in an upper row of the plurality of separators were 180 out of a circular cross section. Each was formed to cover °, and the remaining separators were each formed to cover 76 ° of the circular cross section. Example 3 was formed so that each of the five separation portions located in the upper row and the lower row among the plurality of separation portions respectively covered 180 ° of the circular cross section, and the remaining separation portions respectively formed 76 ° of the circular cross section. .

In the battery modules of Examples 1, 2, and 3, the internal heating temperatures of the unit cells were shown as shown in the photographs shown in FIG. It was. In this case, the internal heat generation temperatures of the unit cells are the surface temperatures of the unit cells, which are temperatures measured at the overall average temperature, 1/3 of the longitudinal direction, and 2/3.

The internal heating temperature of each unit cell is as shown in FIG. 9. In particular, in Example 3, since the separation parts are formed differently to correspond to the unit cells of a specific region, it can be seen that the temperature variation of the unit cells is smaller than that of Example 1 or 2.

FIG. 10 is a graph illustrating an internal exothermic temperature of each unit battery of Example 3 illustrated in FIG. 9.

As shown in FIG. 10, the unit cells have slightly different heat generation depending on the voltages of the cooling fans (8V, 10V, 12V, and 14V), but cell numbers 12 to 21 are commonly assigned to cell numbers 1 to 10. It can be seen that the exothermic temperature of the unit cells is low. That is, cell numbers 1 to 10 were those portions formed to cover 76 ° of the circular cross section, and cell numbers 12 to 21 were those formed to cover 180 ° of the circular cross section. As such, the battery module according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention may adjust the temperature distribution of the unit cells by varying the shape or size of the separator.

That is, the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and various modifications and changes can be made within the scope of the claims, the detailed description of the invention, and the accompanying drawings. Naturally, it belongs to the range of.

1 is a perspective view of a battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating the battery module in a state in which the cover member illustrated in FIG. 1 is removed.

3 is a perspective view illustrating the battery module in a state in which the duct member shown in FIG. 2 is removed.

4 is a cross-sectional view schematically illustrating a coupling relationship between a housing in which a unit cell is built and a duct member cut along a line IV-IV in FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the duct member shown in FIG. 2. FIG.

FIG. 6 is a plan view of the duct member shown in FIG. 5. FIG.

7 is a view listing the shapes of the duct member that can be applied to the battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a photograph illustrating the internal heating temperature of each unit cell in the battery module to which the duct members illustrated in FIG. 7 are applied.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating internal heat generation temperatures of respective unit cells illustrated in FIG. 8.

FIG. 10 is a graph illustrating an internal exothermic temperature of each unit battery of Example 3 illustrated in FIG. 9.

<Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

100: battery module 110: housing

120: cover member 130: unit cell

200: duct member 210, 211: cooling flow path

220, 221: separator

Claims (13)

A plurality of unit cells electrically connected to each other; A housing in which a plurality of through holes are formed to correspond to the unit cells, respectively; And And a duct member coupled to the housing to cover the electrode terminals of the unit cells. In the duct member, a cooling passage for injecting a cooling medium toward the through hole is formed, and a gas discharge passage for discharging gas generated from the unit cells in a predetermined direction is formed. The cooling passage and the gas discharge passage are divided by a separator formed in the duct member, wherein the separator protrudes toward the electrode terminal of the unit cell while the cooling passage is formed to penetrate in the direction toward the electrode terminal. module. delete delete The method of claim 1, The cooling channel is in communication with the separation space existing between the unit cell and the through hole. The method of claim 1, And a plurality of separators corresponding to the unit cells, respectively, and the plurality of separators are arranged in a plurality of rows so that the gas discharge passage is formed between rows. The method of claim 5, The duct member is formed with a discharge port communicating with the gas discharge passage, the gas generated from the unit cells are discharged to the outside through the gas discharge passage and the discharge port. The method of claim 5, The separator has a shape surrounding the portion of the periphery of the electrode terminal of the unit cell, the battery module having an opening surface on one side. The method of claim 7, wherein The unit cell and the through hole are each cylindrical, The separator has a C-shaped cross section corresponding to the unit cell. The method of claim 7, wherein The pair of separators adjacent to each other among the plurality of separators may have respective openings facing each other. The method of claim 9, Unit cells corresponding to the pair of separators are electrically connected by a terminal plate, And the terminal plate is positioned in a space formed by the opening surfaces of the pair of separation portions. The method of claim 9, The plurality of separators are formed in a different size depending on the position arranged in the duct member. The method according to claim 1 or 10, And a cover member covering the duct member and having an inner space for supplying the cooling medium to the cooling passage. 13. The method of claim 12, The cover member is integrally coupled to the housing via the duct member.

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